Though the name Emily Dickinson may be well known—most can identify her as one of the greatest American poets—not many can recite the Belle of Amherst, a play about her life, line-by-line. That same disparity can be found in the oeuvre … Continue reading A QUIET PASSION
It’s 1950, and John Ford wants to make a movie: The Quiet Man, from a story by Maurice Walsh, about a retired boxer who returns to his birthplace in Ireland and falls for a vivacious redhead. The movie will star John Wayne … Continue reading RIO GRANDE
His name is Martin Eden (Luca Marinelli), and he calls no nation home. He’s a sailor by trade—the kind mothers warn their daughters about: tall, dark, and handsome with a few roguish scars and a spectacular head of hair. He’s … Continue reading MARTIN EDEN
Director Jacques Demy sought to make a movie that would make audiences cry. He succeeded in spades. It helps that Michelle Legrande provided one of the most indelible film scores of all time, and cinematographer Jean Rabier found the sourness … Continue reading THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG
Written and directed by Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life—available on Blu-ray and DVD from The Criterion Collection—is a watershed moment in contemporary cinema. Pairing the impressionistic poetry of cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, the abstract visual effects of Douglas Trumbull, the concrete … Continue reading THE TREE OF LIFE
On Jan. 21, 1958, Charles Starkweather entered the Nebraska home of girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate and shot and killed her father, mother, and 2-year-old sister. The two went on the lam, and Starkweather slew seven more over the course of … Continue reading BADLANDS
Lyz Lopez started skiing when she was 4. Who knows what first drew her to the sport, but 11 years on the slopes have shaped Lyz the prodigy into Lyz the competitor. She’s 15 now, and with proper instruction, she … Continue reading SLALOM
The rocky, seaside village of Easter Cove, Maine, does not look like the kind of place you’d want to spend a winter. The snow piles up in great heaps, and the wind coming off the water will send an icicle … Continue reading BLOW THE MAN DOWN
Has decency become a sin?” Ibrahima Dieng cries. On his knees, Ibrahima holds out his empty hands in mock offering. The world has stripped him bare, and now, in an ending fitting of Kafka, Ibrahima offers up the scraps. So … Continue reading MANDABI
